Mr. President STH, L’Avion, Kalisto, Nautilus, Horizonte Win 2021 Spanish Young Horse Championships

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2021 Spanish Young Horse Championships

The 4-year old Mr. President STH, the 5-year old L’Avion, the 6-year old Kalisto, the 7-year old Nautilus and the developing Prix St. Georges horse Horizonte became the grand champions of the 2021 Spanish Young Horse Championships held in Las Cadenas (Madrid), Spain, on 23 - 26 September 2021.

The level presented was once again impressive with a large collection of 80% scoring horses. Two riders stood out more than the rest: José Antonio García Mena got his own collection of gold medals, with two of them round his neck, and Claudio Castilla came home with two bronze medals.

European warmbloods once again dominated over the domestic PRE breed. This year 149 horses competed in the Nationals, with the Hanoverian breed best represent (34), followed by KPWN (30), Oldenburg (21), CDE (16), PRE (14) and Lusitano (12). Interestingly, 25% of the medals were won by Lusitanos!

4-YO: Mr. President STH Starts Command

A year after winning his first 4-year old title, Carlos Bayo regained the same glory but with a different horse. The Madrid rider, who trains under the guidance of Juan Antonio Jiménez, dominated in round 1 with a powerful 84,000%. In the finale, the KWPN bred Mr. President STH (by I’m Perfect STH x Voice) could not repeat the feat of the first place, but his overall count of 299,600 points turned out to be the golden total for Bayo's second gold medal in a row. Carlos was one of the shooting stars last season, but this year he has once again proven his great versatility and expertise in young horses. His second gold medal is no coincidence.

With a difference of 14 points, the silver medal went to Antonio José Vázquez. The rider from the Canary islands stole the show with Hudson M a few seasons ago, and now is back on track with two new prospects. One of them is the Hanoverian Flanell (by Flanell x Hohenstein). In the first qualifier the judges dropped him to the fourteenth position with 72,400%. The radical turn came in the finale, because he moved to first place. Trusting his training, Antonio José Vázquez presented the horse in the same way as round one, but this time climbed more than 13 positions and won the finals with an impressive 88,400%. The horse shone and was awarded with multiple nines: walk, submission and perspective. The trot was awarded with an 8.7 and the canter with an 8.5. The overall 285,400% helped him to secure the silver medal.

Antonio Verdejo and the KWPN bred Mambeau (by Franklin x Stedinger) secured the bronze medal. From his fifth position in the preliminary test to eighth in the finale, this bronze medal was the rider's second medal in his professional career.

5-YO: L'Avion Takes Off

Manuel Pérez Valle and L’Avion (by Livaldon x Longchamp) were a league of their own finishing at the top of the leader board, far ahead of all competition. His supremacy in the 5-year old category was huge, unseating the second placed pair with a difference of 19 points (394,600%)

L’Avion took off from day one and landed on Sunday with the Spanish title for 5-year olds. The head rider of Yeguada Sola Nogales, Manuel Pérez Valle sealed a golden hattrick with great ease and with averages above 88%. The Hanoverian impressed with its quality of gaits, and particular the uphill canter. They didn’t attend the championship's past edition, but at this one they swept the board and shone brightly. With this medal, Manuel Pérez Valle begins his collection of medals and it is the icing of the cake of his work these past years.

Spanish Under 25 team rider Alba Abollo and the CDE bred mare Diva Hit CS (by Delinger x Sancisco) stood in second position of the podium. Abollo is not a stranger to the Young Horses championships. With her Under 25 partner in crime Elvillar CS she climbed the podium in 2014 (4-year-old category) and in 2016 (6-year-old category). In this year's edition, she and her ballerina Diva Hit CS remained in second position in the three qualifiers. Her consistency was the best award, the one that earned her the silver medal. Diva Hit CS received a 10 in the walk.

The winning trio was completed by Juan Manuel Acosta with Mentor B (by Marques x Fidertanz). His bronze medal (364,400%) is a clear example to never give up. Their performances went from less to more. In the first qualifying he placed fifth, then dropped to twelfth, to finish in the final with a second position on 84,600 points. Juan Manuel Acosta added bronze to his expanding collection.

6-YO: Hat-Trick for Kalisto

The 6-year-old category was the one that showcased a titanic fight for silver and bronze, but the leader was clear from day one. Achieving a triple victory, the KWPN bred Kalisto (by Expression x San Amour I) paved his golden path really easily. Samuel Delgado's ability in this championship was remarkable. The rider started off as one of the favourites, but everything can happen. That being said and done, he rode every test with ease and determination. Breaking record after record and scoring above 83%, he steered to victory with a massive total of 379,900 points. This golden medal was the culmination of the 2021 season, the gold medal that has provided Samuel a place into the select club of Spanish Champions.

José Alejandro Alcaide with Laurin (by Lemony's Nicket x Furst Heinrich) were the runners-up with 361,000% points . The Andalusian rider made a huge climb. From tenth position, he placed second and ended up in fourth position in the last round. Laurin was one of the sensations of the show. He has it all: beauty and movement.

Claudio Castilla and the Lusitano Luiki (by Unico x Quixote) collected bronze after two rounds scoring above 80%. The Olympic rider started with the foot off the pedal, but then in the second and third qualifier Luiki exhibited the great quality as Unico's son. At the end, the finesse, delicacy and elegance presented were a demonstration of great rideability .

7-YO: Nautilus Reconquers Gold

The 7-year-old category presented a lot of big names. The cards were on the table and each of them performed their tests at great level, but at the end the big fight was: Sansibar vs Nautilus.

José Antonio García Mena with the Trakehner Nautilus (by Connery x Latimer) took the lead in the first qualifier (76,543%), but Roberto Carlos and the Hanoverian Sansibar (by San Amour x Fidermark) took the spotlight and won the second round (79,268%). Everything went down to the finale which became extremely decisive for determining the overall winner.

The first to compete was Sansibar. His test was flawless. The black horse displayed all his charm and each of his strides was pure poetry. He was rewarded with a 79,486%. Last to go, José Antonio García Mena and Nautilus went for it. Nautilus flowed on the trot part, but the second canter pirouette was too big. His final average of 78.543% was not enough to beat Sansibar in the class.

Numbers never fail and neither does math and coefficients. While last season Nautilus was behind Sansibar, this year the positions were turned. Nautilus became champion of Spain (351.540%), thus improving one position compared to last season. Mena proved again his great talent, not only with upper level trained horses, but with young ones too, showcasing his great training system. With an ephemeral difference of 0.134 points, Roberto Carlos and Sansibar placed second with 351,406%.

Claudio Castilla and the Lusitano Jota Da Hermida (by Unico x Oficial) finished on the bronze step of the podium with solid scores of 73,607%, 74,075% and 73,372%.

Developing PSG: Mena's Second Gold on Horizonte

In the Developing Prix St Georges horse division for 8 and 9-year olds, 29 combinations lined up. The combinations competed in three rounds consisting of the Young Rider Preliminary test, the Prix St Georges and a PSG freestyle.

The joys for José Antonio García Mena did not stop. The Spanish Olympic rider earned his second title with the Lusitano bred Horizonte (by Rico x Icaro). The rider from Medina Sidonia had the summer of a lifetime: the Olympics, European Championships, Aachen and now the two golden medals. Borrowing the music of Concha Navarro and Dimero, Mena rode to the melodies of Grease which highlighted the strides of Horizonte with joy and great harmony. Their 79.820% kur score was the great culmination of three days. Winning a gold medal is always special, but winning two is something magical and very difficult to achieve. For Mena, September 26 will always be a day to remember. Mena and Horizonte won two of the three rounds with solid scores above seventy.

Juan Matute and the Baden Wurttemberger bred Birkin (Bretton Woods x Laurentio) came into the second place (323,737%) while Alfonso Gormaz with the KWPN bred I (El Capone x JetSet D) closed the podium with 320,373%

Results - 2021 Spanish Young Horse Championships - Madrid

4-year olds

1. Mr President Sth - Carlos Bayo Calvo 84,000% 86,800% ---- 299,600%
2. Flanell - Antonio José Vázquez Quintero 72,400% 88,400% ---- 285,400%
3. Mambeau B - Antonio Verdejo Pérez 79,600% 80,600% ---- 280,600%
4. Frederick - Alfonso Gormaz Torcal 75,000% 83,200% ---- 278,900%
5. Messi by Mango - Antonio José Vázquez Quintero 81,200% 78,000% ---- 277,800%
6. Best of - Juan De Dios Ramírez García 81,000% 78,000% ---- 277,500%
7. Maas Ter Kwincke - Alfonso Gormaz Torcal 74,400% 82,800% ---- 277,200%
8. Little by Little - Rubén Costa Giner 75,200% 81,600% ---- 276,000%
9. D´huelva Tr - Juan Manuel Acosta Ponce 80,800% 76,400% ---- 274,000%
10. Fame and Glory - María Gómez Guzmán 73,200% 81,600% ---- 273,000%
11. Tiana 2m2 - Rubén Costa Giner 76,400% 77,200% ---- 269,000%
12. Macgyver L.e. - Juan Francisco Fernández Muñoz 71,000% 81,200% ---- 268,900%
13. Fairplay - Ramón Navarro Parra 78,200% 75,200% ---- 267,700%
14. Niro Das Figueiras - Antonio Verdejo Pérez 77,400% 75,600% ---- 267,300%
15. Flynn - Víctor López Pérez 72,600% 78,400% ---- 265,700%
16. Neron - Manuel García González 71,200% 79,200% ---- 265,200%
17. Nobel Das Figueiras - Antonio Verdejo Pérez 71,000% 77,400% ---- 261,300%
18. Rock Island - Cristina Khamidoulin 71,200% 76,200% ---- 259,200%

5-year olds

1. L'avion Sn - Manuel Pérez Valle 88,000% 88,400% 87,000% ---- 394,600%
2. Diva Hit Cs - Alba Abollo Fontela 86,200% 83,600% 78,600% ---- 368,800%
3. Mentor B - Juan Manuel Acosta Ponce 83,600% 74,400% 84,600% ---- 364,400%
4. Ll Cool J - Juan De Dios Ramírez García 84,800% 76,400% 80,800% ---- 361,000%
5. Mohikaner - Rosendo Delas Llorens 81,600% 80,400% 77,900% ---- 358,000%
6. Lord Sunshine - Lucas Elías Lara 85,200% 80,000% 74,900% ---- 355,000%
7. Fabio Castello Sn - Manuel Pérez Valle 76,200% 78,600% 79,200% ---- 352,500%
8. Slaughter Jb - José Germán Martínez González 80,000% 77,600% 75,400% ---- 347,200%
9. Legacy - Javier Sanz Barroso 78,600% 79,000% 74,400% ---- 345,900%
10. Lance - Alejandro Oliva Lázaro 80,000% 72,000% 76,200% ---- 340,400%
11. Fraggle Rock - Juan Francisco Fernández Muñoz 78,800% 74,400% 74,400% ---- 339,200%
12. Drago - Alfonso Expósito Santiso 75,400% 75,800% 75,000% ---- 339,100%
13. Frankie Blue Bcn - Núria Vilà Pérez 78,200% 73,100% 74,400% ---- 336,650%
14. Lavendel - Antonio Vivancos Cervantes 78,600% 72,600% 74,000% ---- 335,500%
15. Sir Rubino - Andrés Cepeda Moreno 79,200% 70,200% 74,600% ---- 333,700%
16. Aranykapu Close - David Bonmati Lavado 78,000% 71,200% 72,200% ---- 329,200%

6-year olds

1. Kalisto - Samuel Delgado Mateos 84,200% 85,400% 83,800% ---- 379,900%
2. Laurin - José Alejandro Alcaide Roda 77,000% 82,400% 80,200% ---- 361,000%
3. Liuki - Claudio Castilla Ruiz 77,000% 80,400% 80,600% ---- 358,800%
4. Semino Sn - Manuel Pérez Valle 79,800% 79,800% 79,600% ---- 358,700%
5. Danbury - Carlos Bayo Calvo 72,300% 78,400% 83,600% ---- 357,100%
6. Dimancier Sn - Manuel Pérez Valle 80,800% 77,600% 78,200% ---- 353,600%
7. Fenicia Sn - Manuel Pérez Valle 78,600% 79,000% 76,800% ---- 350,700%
8. Delhi - Agustín García Garrido 80,600% 79,000% 74,800% ---- 348,700%
9. Fuengirola - Alejandro Sánchez Del Barco 79,800% 79,600% 74,400% ---- 348,000%
10. Schezuan - Alejandro Oliva Lázaro 74,100% 76,800% 79,200% ---- 347,700%
11. Dario Cr - María Culsan Pérez 77,400% 80,800% 73,000% ---- 344,600%
12. Klungel - Lucas Fernández Valdeolivas 78,200% 78,000% 74,200% ---- 343,600%
13. Limbro Da Hermida - Claudio Castilla Ruiz 72,200% 76,400% 77,600% ---- 342,000%
14. Viriathus Van Gc - Óscar González Sanz 77,800% 78,800% 71,800% ---- 339,600%
15. For Austrius - Marta Peña Montaner 76,600% 76,800% 73,600% ---- 339,000%
16. Kim Tarka - Javier Higuera Carmona 77,000% 74,400% 74,400% ---- 337,400%
17. Gumilas - Diana Ostariz Oliver 76,600% 73,600% 73,600% ---- 334,200%
18. Kees Van Elzberg - Ángel Antonio Ortega Torres 74,600% 75,200% 72,800% ---- 333,000%

7-year olds

1. Nautilus - José Antonio García Mena 76,543% 78,607% 78,543% ---- 351,540%
2. Sansibar - Roberto Carlos Cruz Rodríguez 73,532% 79,268% 79,486% ---- 351,406%
3. Jota Da Hermida - Claudio Castilla Ruiz 73,607% 74,075% 73,372% ---- 331,464%
4. Quartar - Alejandro Oliva Lázaro 72,957% 73,075% 73,114% ---- 328,798%
5. For Naja - Jesús Sánchez Martín 72,590% 72,400% 73,586% ---- 328,362%
6. Jessica - Antonio Verdejo Pérez 69,886% 69,872% 74,014% ---- 322,722%
7. Sydney - Susana Vázquez Mostaza 73,278% 70,550% 70,900% ---- 320,903%
8. Banduendo - Gustavo Artillo Linares 71,814% 69,593% 72,300% ---- 320,804%
9. Sarokki - Carlos Bayo Calvo 69,993% 70,407% 70,914% ---- 317,432%
10. Jarabe Do Sobral - Pedro Hernández Triviño 66,200% 71,250% 70,528% ---- 314,131%
11. Teatrero De Centurion - Joseph Robert Hunt 66,822% 69,054% 71,272% ---- 312,947%
12. Quidam Royal Old - Álvaro Gómez Pavón 68,186% 69,200% 69,243% ---- 310,472%
13. Altanero Cciii - Samuel López Candel 67,146% 69,104% 69,100% ---- 309,002%
14. Jesperado - Brigitte Van Der Hagen Nijst 68,518% 67,193% 69,257% ---- 307,822%
15. Garzo - Andrés Cepeda Moreno 68,996% 68,082% 67,386% ---- 305,891%
16. Jonas De Gea - Mikel Ochotorena Araiz 68,540% 67,418% 67,100% ---- 303,867%
17. Jiddo - José Gálvez González 69,614% 66,504% 67,043% ---- 303,456%
18. Junco Da Broa - Juan Francisco Fernández Muñoz 67,632% 68,246% 64,300% ---- 298,601%

Developing PSG

1. Horizonte - José Antonio García Mena 69,792% 72,412% 79,820% ---- 338,050%
2. Birkin - Juan Pablo Matute Guimon 70,573% 70,029% 74,060% ---- 323,737%
3. I - Alfonso Gormaz Torcal 70,833% 69,000% 73,020% ---- 320,373%
4. Quarlito Von Nymphenburg - Juan De Dios Ramírez García 67,292% 68,618% 72,700% ---- 315,619%
5. Shadow - María Carnerero Morente 68,177% 68,206% 72,155% ---- 314,796%
6. Hermes De Encinasola - Rafael Adrián Heredia Muñoz 67,708% 69,235% 70,650% ---- 312,861%
7. Honneur Stm - Manuel Pérez Valle 69,063% 68,177% 70,135% ---- 311,599%
8. Solano De Centurion - Juan Manuel Galeano Cerezo 69,062% 69,000% 68,940% ---- 310,442%
9. Yelmo Azores - Juan De Dios Ramírez García 66,927% 67,647% 69,380% ---- 307,158%
10. Quincallo De Indalo Ii - Alejandro Sánchez Del Barco 65,260% 67,706% 69,850% ---- 306,519%
11. Florida - Carmen Getino Gutiérrez 66,458% 67,235% 68,990% ---- 305,291%
12. Importante Ii - Rafael Soto Andrade 66,250% 69,029% 67,730% ---- 305,254%
13. Truco - Luis Carlos García Domínguez 64,740% 67,765% 69,365% ---- 305,118%
14. Icaro - Emma Pla González 66,771% 66,294% 69,045% ---- 304,302%
15. Hip by Jonhson - Lucía Gallardo Muñoz 66,979% 65,441% 67,990% ---- 301,121%
16. Impossebel - Arturo Díaz Mellado 65,052% 68,118% 66,300% ---- 299,829%
17. Zagal Azores - Jenni Matilda Schmechel 64,687% 66,294% 67,650% ---- 299,428%
18. Onelli - José Manuel Quilis Galán 64,167% 66,677% 67,080% ---- 298,343%